A class-action lawsuit on behalf of ticket buyers filed Thursday morning in Hennepin County District Court claims the Timberwolves’ use of the digital marketplace Flash Seats makes it too hard for fans to exchange tickets, sell them on the secondary market or even give them away.

The suit, filed by law firm Zimmerman Reed of Minneapolis, claims the Wolves’ new “draconian” and “cumbersome” policies produce “economic harm” and violate contracts, state trade acts and antitrust laws.

The lead plaintiffs, season-ticket holders GLS Companies of Brooklyn Park and James Mattson, contend they were not adequately notified about changes in ticketing policy until after they agreed to spend $32,000 and $21,000, respectively, on season tickets in 2015-16.

Last year, the Timberwolves and Lynx partnered with Flash Seats to become the first professional sports teams to go 100 percent digital for ticket sales. Fans use a computer or smartphone app to obtain, exchange or resell tickets. They lock in tickets digitally, then use a credit card, ID or phone app to enter Target Center.

The lawsuit representing an estimated “thousands” of plaintiffs claims “the new policies were designed to benefit Defendant and harm ticket purchasers.”

Timberwolves President Chris Wright said in a statement the team is aware of the lawsuit.

“The Timberwolves and Lynx organizations are confident that Flash Seats supplies the best possible experience for our fans,” he said. “Flash Seats gives our ticket holders the maximum possible convenience and complete control over their Timberwolves and Lynx tickets. We are committed to continuing to give our fans the best possible experience.”

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The Wolves have drawn criticism since debuting the digital marketplace this season. One complaint is that Flash Seats sets a minimum price for which tickets can be resold, then charges fees to the seller and buyer. Another is that ticket holders can’t give the tickets to anyone not registered with Flash Seats.

The suit calls these policies “unlawful limitations,” citing legal bases that include breach of contract, unjust enrichment and violation of state acts concerning consumer fraud.

Wolves partial season-ticket holder Adam Webb told the Pioneer Press in January that Flash Seats set a resale price floor at 75 percent of face value, plus fees — sometimes making it impossible to resell his seats.

The suit said the “arbitrarily imposed” minimum resale price set by Flash Seats ranged from 75 to 90 percent of face value and should be much lower for a team with the Timberwolves’ record, 19-42 as of Wednesday.

In January, Wright told the Pioneer Press that Flash Seats generally has been well received by fans. Without going into detail, he said the pricing strategy was established to “make sure that our tickets are not completely undervalued by the market.”

The Timberwolves, who will miss the playoffs for the 12th straight season, rank last among 30 NBA teams in attendance with an average of 14,045 fans for 31 home games at Target Center.

Flash Seats was founded by Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert. Its website lists the Cavaliers and fellow NBA teams Utah Jazz, Denver Nuggets and Houston Rockets among its clients.

Zimmerman Reed was involved in a $42 million settlement that former NFL players received in 2013 from the league over the league’s use of players’ names and images without their consent.

Andy Greder covers two varieties of football — Minnesota Gophers and Minnesota United, aka the club embarking into Major League Soccer this year. Since joining the Pioneer Press full time in November 2013, he’s also covered the Timberwolves as a beat and spot duty from the Vikings to high schools. He was a part-time breaking news reporter at the Pioneer Press from 2011-13, when he was also a freelance writer and organic farmer. He started at the Duluth News Tribune in 2006, covering sports, news and business until living abroad in 2010.

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“The new policies were designed to benefit the Defendant (the Timberwolves) and harm ticket purchasers.”

That pretty much describes the whole point of selling tickets in the first place.

mariesa

Lynx STH here. I don’t like Flash Seats either. It would be nice to have the option to print paper tickets when I want to donate for charity or give to a friend when I can’t go to the game.

kstech

The buyer of season tickets should be able to login and print tickets for any games they wish and sell them, or gift them in hand. It seems very Antitrust allowing no other competition for something that is owned. Its not a dvd or a book and they are treating a seat like its a copyright. Strange.

DS

Dear Chris Wright,

I hate flash seats and you need to go back to the previous system. People should be able to sell their tickets at whatever price they want and to whomever they want. This system is pricing out the casual fans that go to a handful of games every year. I usually go to about 4-5 games every year from stubhub, it was very convenient to just print the tickets at home/work and bring them to the game. The only reason why tickets were being resold for so cheap is because the team is terrible. Maybe put a playoff team on the court and the prices will go up. This year I have unfortunately attended ZERO games, I can’t logically overpay to watch a 19-42 team. Thanks Timberwolves, enjoy having the lowest attendance in the League.

Sincerely,
A Diehard Twolves fan

EastSider

“Wolves partial season-ticket holder Adam Webb told the Pioneer Press in January that Flash Seats set a resale price floor at 75 percent of face value, plus fees — sometimes making it impossible to resell his seats.” – says a lot right there. Maybe they should worry about putting a winning product on the court rather than trying to make more money through digital tickets.

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